Disk for water-meters.



No. 660,383. 3 Patented Oct. 23, I900.

F. LAMBERT.

DISK FOR WATER METERS.

A ncapion filed my 11, 1899.)

(No m qm w afor UNlTED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

FRANK LAMBERT, oE-NEw YORK, N. Y.

DISK FOR WATER-METERS.

$PEGIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 660,383, dated October 23, 1900.

Application filed May 11, 1899. Serial No. 716,354. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANK LAMBERT, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of New York, (Brooklyn,) Kings county, State of New York, have invented Improvements in Disks for Water-Meters, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in nutating disk-pistons for water-meters.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a sectional side elevation 'of the disk-chamber of a meter and a disk-piston shown in full view. Fig. 2 is a plan view of the disk-piston and representing a sectional View of the diaphragm of the disk-chamber in its relative position to the disk. Fig. 2 is a section of the disk-piston on line 2 2 of Fig. 2. Fig. 3 is a section on line 3 3 of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 represents three different views of a detail of the improved disk-piston. Fig. 5 is a sectional view of a modified form of disk-piston, and Fig. 6 is a plan of the disk-piston shown in Fig. 5, representing also a section of the diaphragm. Fig. 7 is a sectional view of another modification of the disk-piston. Fig. 8 is a plan view of a disk-piston, showing a further modification. Fig. 9 represents an end and a side View of a detail of the modification shown in Fig. 8, and Fig. 10 represents an end and side view of a modification of this detail. Fig. 11 is a sectional View of another form of disk-piston and disk-chamber, the'said piston being provided with my improvements.

In meters of this kindthe disk-piston nutates in the disk-chamber and is prevented from rotating bythe diaphragm of the chamber standing in the slot of the piston. Under certain abnormal conditions, such as caused by water-hammer, or when from any reason there is an unequal opposing resistance to the motion of the disk-piston at opposite sides of the diaphragm, backlash in the fit between the diaphragm and'the piston occurs, causing considerable flection strain on a portion or segment of the piston at one side of the diaphragm. Foreign material passing through the meter often causes the piston to break at the segment near the outlet side of the diaphragm, and also the momentum of the water when the meter is working at a high rate of speed may cause a flection of the segment of the piston at the outlet side of the diaphragm, and often the strain from this flection is so great that the disk breaks at this point. Heretofore this flection strain or the backlash has always been borne by the segment of the piston at oneside only of the diaphragm; but with my improvements the two segments of the disk-piston at the inlet and outlet sides of the diaphragm are united, so that the pressure thereon at one side of the diaphragm is partly transferred to the segment of the piston at the other side of the diaphragm, or, in other words, unequal opposing resistance to the motion of the diskpiston at opposite sides of the diaphragm is equally resisted by the segments of thepiston at each side of the diaphragm and the strength of the piston at the slotted part thereby increased. Moreover, the cramping action which sometimes tends to take place between the edge of the slot or opening of the piston and the face of the diaphragm, especially when the meter is working at a high rate of speed, is avoided by my improved construction of disk-piston.

Referring to Figs. 1, 2, 3, and 4, my improved disk-piston is formed of three component parts'namely, the circular fiatportion 1, having an opening to pass over the diaphragm of the disk-chamber, an intermediate piece 2, preferably in the form of a cylinder, and the ball part 3. As shown in Figs. 1, 2, and 3, the circular part 1 and the ball part 3 are made in one piece. The edges of the opening 4 are formed either partly or wholly by concave grooves, as will be seen by reference to Figs. 1 and2 which grooves constitute part of the bearing for the intermediate piece 2, the rest of the bearing for this piece 2 being a circular recess in the ball 3. The construction of piece 2 is more clearly shown in Fig. 4. It is slotted at 5, and the faces of this slot form the contact-faces working over the diaphragm f the dislvcham ber'7. To prevent leakage, the inner end of the slot 5 is cut on a curve corresponding to the circumference of the ball 3 and the curve of the inner edge of the diaphragm 6. The component parts 1 and 3 of the disk-piston are rotatively mounted with the intermediate piece 2-that is, during the mutating motion of the pistonwhile the part 2 simply moves .pressure thereupon .is partly transferred,

through this intermediate piece 2, to the portion on the other side of the diaphragm, so that both segments bear the strain. From this construction it will be seen that the faces of the slot of the disk-piston may always bear the same relation to the diaphragmthat is, they may always be parallel therewith-that a full face of the slot may be always in contact with the diaphragm, and that the play between the piston and the diaphragm may be always constant and equal in all the various angular positions of the piston while nutating, because the disk-piston is provided with slot faces adapted to be maintained at a constant angle irrespective of the angular position of the rest of the piston. By forming the intermediate piece 2 of greater or less diameter the width of the face-contact between the piston and the diaphragm may be equal to the thickness of the disk portion itself or any other desired width. As shown in Fig. 3, the pin 8, which drives the registering mechanism, is secured to the piston by being passed through diametrical openings in the ball part 3, one of which openings is screwthreaded to engage the threads 9'on the spindle carrying the pin 8. This spindle is shouldered at 10, the shoulder bearing against the inner circumferential wall of the ball. These figures show the circular portion 1 as wedgeshaped from the center ball portion to the outer circumference.

Figs. 5 and 6 represent the intermediate piece 2 of the piston as estending out to or nearly to the outer circumference of the circular portion 1 of the piston. As shown in these figures, the ball part of the piston is formed of two separate pieces 11 and 12, and the circular portion of the piston is of the same thickness from the ball to the circumference and is recessed to form the whole bearing for the intermediate piece 2. The component parts of this piston may be securely held together by means of the screwthreaded spindle 13, carrying the pin 8. In this case as the piece 2 fills the entire opening of the piston, or nearly so, perforations or grooves 14 15 may be provided in the pis ton near the diaphragm for the escape of water which may be confined at the end of an upward ordownward oscillation of the piston.

Fig. '7 shows the intermediate piece 2 as provided with a long pin 16, passing through the central hole in the ball 3 and having a This strengthat 17, and this shoulder bears against the inner wall of the ball, the spindle being maintained in place by the nut 18 screwing onto the reduced screw-threaded portion below the shoulder. The spindle is shown as provided with a hole 19 sufficiently large to allow the pin 16 to pass freely through it.

Fig. 8 shows a modification of the intermediate piece, this form being well adapted for preventing the cramping action between the piston and the diaphragm when metal disks are used. In this case the intermediate piece 20 may bear wholly within the central, ball part3 of the piston, and instead of the intermediate piece being slotted the diaphragm is slotted and the piece 20 provided with a projection 21, working in the slot of the diaphragm. This projection may be of any de sired form; but the forms shown in Figs. 9 and 10 are preferable, as they give wide bearing-faces. The projection 21 prevents the piston from rotating on its axis, so that the edge of the opening for the diaphragm can not be forced against the latter.

Fig. 11 shows the intermediate piece 2 applied to a cup-shaped or conical disk-piston, but needs no further explanation in view of the foregoing description.

Whenever the intermediate piece 2 projects beyond the circular portion 1 of the pisston, the disk-chamber is pocketed, as shown at 22 23, Fig. 11, on each side of the diaphragm, so as to permit the full nutation of the piston. Such construction is necessary for the forms shown by Figs. 1, 2, and 3 and by Fig. 7; also, when the construction shown in Fig. 8 is provided with an intermediate piece, such as shown in Fig. 10, the slot in the dia phragm will have to extend a little below and a little above the face of the disk-chamber to allow the full nutation of the piston.

I do not limit myself to the precise forms herein shown; but

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a water-meter, a disk-chamber provided with a diaphragm, a disk-piston having an opening for the diaphragm, and a slotted intermediate piece against which the walls of said opening bear, whereby pressure on the piston at one side of the said opening is resisted by the piston at both sides of the open mg.

2. In a water-meter, a disk-chamber, a diaphragm, a nutating disk-piston having an opening for the diaphragm, and provided with an intermediate piece in the opening, the said piece having a contact-face of any desired width, the width of contact between the face of the intermediate piece and the face of the diaphragm remaining constant in all angular positions of the piston.

3. In a Water-meter, a diaphragm, a nntating disk-piston provided with an opening for IIO ceases e the diaphragm and a slotted intermediate piece in the said opening, the said intermediate piece and the rest of the piston being rotatively mounted together.

4. In a water-meter, a disk-chamber, a diaphragm, a nutating disk-piston having an opening and an intermediate piece in the said opening, the said piece being prevented by the diaphragm from turning on its own axis, the rest of the disk-piston When nutating hav ing a movement of rotation around said piece.

5. In a Water-meter, a disk-chamber, a diaphragm, a nutating disk-piston having a radial opening and a central ball and an intermediate piece rotatively mounted in the said opening, the bearing for said piece being partly in the said opening and partly in the central ball. I

6. In a water-meter, a disk-chamber, a diaphragm, and a mutating piston having a radial opening, each wall of which is provided with a circular concave radial groove.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses;

FRANK LAMBERT.

Witnesses:

EVA HOFFMAN, EDITH J. GRISWOLD; 

